The Hammers’ long unbeaten run in Europe was halted a fortnight ago when they were defeated 2-1 by the Greek side.
West Ham will seek vengeance this week when they visit Olympiakos in the Europa League at the London Stadium. In that encounter, David Moyes’ side suffered their first defeat on the continent since 2022, although they still lead Group A.
And they’ll be out to gain one over their opponents in order to preserve their position at the top and keep their qualification hopes alive. If they fail to respond with a victory, further pressure will be placed on Moyes, whose position as manager is under peril due to West Ham’s poor Premier League campaign.
This is West Ham’s first Olympiakos match since November 1965. The teams met in the second round of the European Cup Winners’ Cup at the Boleyn Ground, with the Hammers reigning winners.
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Ron Greenwood’s team had legendary names like Bobby Moore and Geoff Hurst, with the latter playing a key role in the victory.
The great England international scored twice before Johnny Byrne and Peter Brabrook completed a 4-0 victory. The two sides will now face again in London for the first time in 57 years, with West Ham hoping to repeat their stunning victory.
Kurt Zouma, the Hammers captain, failed a late fitness test on Saturday and missed his team’s defeat to Brentford. However, the defender could return to action this week, while Lucas Paqueta and Edson Alvarez will play after being suspended for the weekend’s encounter.
After missing the trip to Greece the last time out in Europe, Lukasz Fabianksi is anticipated to start in goal instead of Alphonse Areola. Andreas Ntoi served a suspension in the previous match for Olympiakos, but he will be available for this one.
Omar Richards and Giulian Biancone, both former Nottingham Forest full-backs, are both injured and will be unavailable when they return to England. Athanasios Androutsos and Nicolas Freire are also injured.
Moyes has spoken about what his team learned from their defeat in Greece two weeks ago.
“I don’t think I learned anything I didn’t know,” he told me.
“They have some really talented players, and we were aware of their atmosphere as well.”
“We’re facing one of the better teams we’ve faced in Europe.”
“And I’ve got to say we’re going to have an incredible crowd, so we’ll give Olympiakos the chance to see us in good form and our home fans at their best too.”
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